Planning with Numbers: Building Assessment into ProjectsReady, set, assess!

In the old days…

• Get an idea.• (Maybe) draft a plan.• (Maybe) confer with a

colleague or two.• (Maybe) talk to some other

people.• Do it.• Sit back and receive kudos,

watch enjoy the improved service/collection/space.

• How did you know the project was appropriate for your library?

• Did it fit larger library or institutional goals?

• Could you articulate its costs and benefits?

• Who was supposed to benefit from this project? Did they know it was happening? Did they realize how it was supposed to improve their library world?

How was the project deemed a success?

Or failure?

But…

Enter: Assessment!

• Create clear goals - tie your project to strategic plan, give your project potential for “success”.

• Create clear measures for assessing “success”.

• Ensure key stakeholders are central to these goals and measures.

• Mitigate negative issues created by change.

• Create a plan with “stop-and-measure” points along the way = adjustments can be made OR kill switch can be pulled.

• Broadcast your success – communication is made easy because you have already collected the data!

• Continue to measure the product against the stated goals OR create new goals for the implemented project.

Project 1: New Research Help Desk

• Proposed move from big reference desk to integrated Research Help Desk at front counter.

• Stakeholders: Students, Librarians, Staff

• Two outcomes available:

• Stay integrated into main front counter

• buy a new, smaller desk

• Proposed project viewed very negatively by some Librarians and staff.

• Carried out Mar-July 2014

• Kill point: end of spring term

Project 1: New Research Help Desk• Consultation and

discussion yielded goals:1. Students can find and

use our services as or more easily

2. Workspace is adequate and comfortable

3. Workspace does not inhibit student/Librarian interaction

4. Neutral or positive impact on Circulation Services work area

• Goals yielded measures & tools:1. Student

satisfaction/survey; observation

2. Librarian satisfaction/direct feedback

3. Student satisfaction/survey

4. Staff satisfaction/direct feedback

Project 1: New Research Help Desk• RESULTS (besides a new desk):

• Students: Improved visibility, same high quality of service confirmed

• Staff: Relations with staff improved, negative impact of change mitigated

• Librarians: feel more integrated, still working out comfort issues

Project 2: Discovery Evaluation•Reviewing 2 webscale discovery

products for potential purchase.• Goals:

• Improve accessibility of the collection

• Provide more intuitive search environment

• Spend our money wisely

Project 2: Discovery Evaluation•Reviewing 2 webscale discovery

products for potential purchase.• Decision & Implementation Measures/Tools:

• Stakeholder usability tests

• Stakeholder satisfaction surveys

• Ongoing Measures:

• Actual usage stats

• Change in usage stats of collection

• Informal observation during user interaction

Project 2: Discovery Evaluation•RESULTS (besides a new search box):• Greater insight into user experience with these

products and searching in general

• Clear justification for purchase of preferred product based on evidence

• Potential justification for ongoing expense

• Branding opportunity for new search across campus

Project Proposal Template

GoalsWhat is this project trying to achieve?

MeasuresHow will measure the success of the project against the goals set above?Will testing or research be required?

Related Library GoalsHow does this project advance our Library Goals & Strategies?

All factors to be determined by the

Team with consultation of the

stakeholders.

Attributions

• “talk” icon made by Yannick from www.flaticon.com, licensed under CC BY 3.0

• “bright light bulb”, “plan”, “working”, “man in a party dancing with people”, thumbs up” icons made by Freepik from www.flaticon.com, licensed under CC BY 3.0